Demitri finally pulled himself together enough to meet Olivia’s eyes and his gaze was drawn to the single tear that made its way down her cheek. For a split second, he was afraid that he had made her upset, but the smile that crept onto her face gave the boy hope that he’d said the right thing. They were still dancing, but Demitri was no longer focusing on the movement, just the girl in his arms. He wasn’t sure if he was imagining what he saw in her eyes, what he felt as they swayed along the dance floor.

"You have no idea how much it means to hear that,"

The Aquila felt his forehead crease as he gave her a confused look. Her eyes were still sparkling with unshed tears and Demitri had no problems looking straight at her. As she thanked him, despite what he had said earlier, he shook his head gently. Although the music was still playing, Demitri tugged her so they were off of the dance floor. He brought his hand up and brushed his thumb over the dried tear that was marring her cheek. He shook his head again, debating internally about voicing his thoughts.

He wanted to ask why she didn’t believe in herself, because that much was clear. It was so obvious, from the first time they had met, that Olivia didn’t think she deserved happiness. It was like she didn’t think that she was a person who deserved anything good in life and Demitri wanted to hunt down whoever made her feel that way and make them see how wrong they were. At least, he assumed that someone had done something of the kind to shatter the hopes that the girl had. He didn’t think that people were like that normally, sure there were some exceptions, but the boy felt like most were pushed to the breaking point where they just couldn’t handle it anymore. So they believed that they weren’t good enough for anything or anyone.

Demitri didn’t want anyone to feel that way, especially not Olivia. He wouldn’t admit that to her, considering he could barely admit it to himself. He didn’t want to admit it to himself because somewhere in his mind, he knew it wasn’t a good idea. But he felt it nonetheless, because she mattered to him. As they stood there on the side of the dance floor, Demitri was searching for words, for anything to say. He couldn’t though; he couldn’t bring himself to ask her what it was that made her the way she was. Instead, he pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her.

“I don’t know why,” he whispered quietly for only the two of them to hear. “but whenever I’m with you, I just want to make you see that you are worth so much more than you think.” The prince could detect the faint scent of lavender and Demitri fought the urge to bury his nose in his hair. He felt perfectly content with his arms wrapped around her and his heart was beating rapidly. “I might just spend the rest of my time here making sure you know how special you are.”

Berating sentiments plagued Olivia's mind; how could she be so uncoordinated? And she was wearing heels , so that definitely did not feel pleasant on Demitri's poor foot. He had been so kind, either... more

Sometimes, people shattered. Olivia never had because she had never gotten the opportunity to form fully. Her early childhood had been a toxic place, burning through her. It was only since getting... more

Inevitably and unsurprisingly, Olivia had screwed everything up. She knew she had done it when he stepped away. His touch suddenly absent, she felt as alone as she had ever been. It was solitude in a ... more

“No, please!” Brown eyes closed and shoulders slumped ever so slightly at the words spoken beseechingly by the girl. A hand caught his own, and he turned around to meet the brown eyes. Demitri felt... more

Slipping, slipping, slipping. Brown eyes watched, praying to the heavenly nothing. Please. No. Please! His hand in hers, the skin so warm against her own, and it felt like infinity. An unspoken... more